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by adsfgbdfg.lakubfds-vgukebf
Summary: ...
1. A Forgotten Story Retold

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_Midgarian Time's Best-Seller_

**A Forgotten Story Retold**

Doctor Van Braun

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"Superb…It's a tell-all book by 'The Great Sephiroth.' How can you resist?"  
-Kalm Post

"The vivid imagery paints an intriguing mosaic. Van Braun creates a beautiful tale for us all."  
-Reader's Reviews

"Chilling…Van Braun takes us on a dazzling journey with a legend."  
-Junon Magazine

"So well conceived that it was real."  
-Midgarian Books Weekly

"Van Braun demonstrates the power of truth mixed with fiction. With intelligent prose, Van Braun  
inserts himself into the world of the villainous Sephiroth, where he makes a deal with the devil. Drawing on human-like characters seemingly pulled from life itself as well as the lushly depicted settings of Midgar, Nibelheim, and Wutai, Van Braun deftly lures readers into an enchanting world of hidden monsters that have thankfully passed."  
-New Man

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_To my memories of Cloud Strife, Tiffany Lockhart, and Zack Milano.  
May you all rest quietly.  
- Sephiroth_

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Author's note: I have no skill in writing at all. Forgive me for any errors, or things like that. Also, please excuse me if I don't describe much as a narrator. Sephiroth, the character of course, covers everything. Please, try to enjoy his story in inverse relation to how much I enjoyed learning it.

Thank you.

- Doctor Van Braun


	2. Omitted Prologue

Doctor Van Braun approached the doors of the Nibelheim mansion, knocked on the door lightly with his knuckles, and pulled it open and stepped inside – it was dark and tense, like a worried, anxious heart about to lose everything – like something was about to happen. Van Braun looked around warily.

Doctor Van Braun was a man that appeared in his mid-fifties with gray hair, a balding scalp, a pair of spectacles, and a wrinkling face. He wore inconspicuous clothes, which consisted of a pair of blue jeans, a t-shirt, and a brown sweater. He wasn't anything special. He looked around the insides of the mansion. He didn't see anything but dust and decay.

A tall man appeared out of nowhere. He was wearing black leather. His leather pants were loose and his heavy black leather trench coat was tied by a belt at the waist. His hair was long and silver, and it was pulled back. His bangs stood up in front and fell down, covering his face. His eyes were a bright emerald green that shined through his bangs. They had the glow of makou in them, but they were much more intense than that of a normal SOLDIER. This man was Sephiroth, the ex-general of Shinra. Sephiroth greeted him, his voice calm, quiet, but powerful. "Hello." He recognized the doctor.

Doctor Van Braun forced a smile, "Hi, it's been quite some time."

"It has," the silver-haired man responded. He was so still except for when his mouth moved that he could have been mistaken as a statue. Only the changing glow of his green eyes let Van Braun keep track of his presence. If Sephiroth closed his eyes, he could have disappeared entirely. Eerie.

"How are you?"

"There is no 'how' to my being," Sephiroth responded, "I simply am." This confused Van Braun. Sephiroth ignored his confusion and continued: "Why are you here? Are there no more patients for you to tend?"

The doctor mentally frowned, and looked at Sephiroth, and responded, "I'm here to see you, of course."

"Now you've seen me. Leave."

"What?" The doctor was completely caught off-guard by how this sounded.

"I would like you to leave now; I am currently occupied."

"Too occupied to see the person that saved your life?" Dr. Van Braun tried to invoke a guilt-trip in the man, but it didn't work.

"Yes. Now leave."

"Please..."

"No," Sephiroth said firmly, with some hidden force in his voice that almost made Van Braun give up. Dr. Van Braun was stubborn, though, and refused to bend.

"But, I've come all this way and searched so long to find you," the doctor begged.

Sephiroth studied him for a bit, and then commented, "That is untrue."

Dumbfounded, the doctor stuttered his words for a moment, and finally came out with, "I can't leave now! I just got here!"

The ex-general arched his silver eye-brows. "You can't?" He feigned concern and Dr. Braun felt ashamed for even coming to see him at this point. "Let me assist you, doctor," Sephiroth said mockingly. He easily lifted the man up by the collar and began to carry him towards the door.

Dr. Van Braun struggled. "Let go of me! Listen!"

Sephiroth stopped, submitting for some unidentifiable reason, and then set the doctor on the ground. "Fine. Talk."

"I want to learn about you."

"No." His voice nearly crushed Van Braun just by the way it felt around him.

"I-I want to know why it is that you were trying to destroy the wo..."

Cutting him short, Sephiroth said cryptically, "It was never me doing it – something else made that attempt."

"He was a monster..."

Sephiroth interrupted him again, "No. Her nature was confused and she couldn't have done otherwise."

The doctor stared at him for a moment with a confused look on his face, "What exactly do you mean?"

"The 'Sephiroth' you are thinking of..." the mercury-haired man started, but then stopped. Sephiroth turned his attention more fully to the doctor. Sephiroth was unreadable. "I don't think I can tell you," Sephiroth said, "you wouldn't understand." Dr. Van Braun began to feel a nearly imperceptable twinge between his eyes that echoed throughout his skull.

"But..." The doctor shook his head, trying to clear it.

"I told you what you wished to learn, now leave."

"But, I have to..." he was cut off yet again by the overpowering Sephiroth.

"You never have to do anything but die – we're all wandering, looking for an empty grave so we can stop worrying." Sephiroth continued to eye the man. Dr. Van Braun turned away, unnerved. Sephiroth didn't mean "we" by that – he meant "everyone but me".

"Could you just tell me everything? I... I want to know..." As stubborn as he was, he had almost had enough.

"No."

"But I saved your..."

"Don't remind me of that," Sephiroth interrupted once more, his voice administering the final blow to Van Braun.

The doctor pleaded helplessly. "Please, I'll do anything you want..."

Sephiroth seemed to reconsider. "Anything?"

"Anything and everything," the doctor replied, both willing and unwilling.

Sephiroth paused. "I just might have a use for you, then."

"What do you..." the doctor began to ask, perplexed, but was promptly stopped by the tall-man with a single gesture.

"Do exactly as I tell you: visit Dawn, she lives in this part of Nibelheim. Have her lend you a tape recorder and as many blank tapes as she has with her."

"Why...?"

"Just do it. Tell her that I asked you to bring those things to me. Afterwards, do whatever you want until nightfall. At sunset, return here. Only then will I give you the rest of the conditions. Do you understand?"

The doctor merely nodded.

"I want to hear you answer. 'Yes,' or 'no'?" Sephiroth sounded slightly irritated.

"Yes..."

"Good. Now hurry. I have some of my own business to take care of."

* * *

Dr. Van Braun marched to what he presumed to be Dawn's house. He knocked upon the door. A burly tall man came to the door. He was round yet powerful and tall. Definitely tall. He wore dirty clothes, like they had oil spilled on them, but didn't seem to mind very much. Dr. Van Braun looked at the man, and forced a friendly smile. "Hello, does Dawn live here?"

"Nopes, she lives down a house, ya' missed her by jes a bit." Where was he from? Dr. Van Braun couldn't tell. "She lives next-door." He pointed in the direction.

"I see." Dr. Van Braun paused. "Well, thank you for your time."

"Don' mention it," the large man said gruffly.

"Sorry for bothering you."

"S'alright." The large man shut the door in Dr. Van Bran's face, but not out of rudeness. He was probably very busy.

Dr. Van Bran muttered a couple things to himself and continued to Dawn's home. He knocked on the wooden door, and it opened up. A woman looked at the doctor from inside, and motioned him inside. "Come in. It's cold outside." She sounded hospitable and friendly, and spoke in a thick, Nibelheimic accent.

"Thank you. Are you Dawn?"

"Yes, I'm Dawn," the woman clarified. She was of about average height and somewhat plump with shoulder-length auburn hair. She wore a blue, ruffled skirt with a white blouse. Such was expected of a saleswoman in such a town. She was average. Average with much friendliness and charisma. "How're you? It's so nice to see someone not from around here." She smiled warmly. Dr. Van Bran relaxed a little.

"I'm all right; a bit anxious though." He sighed, looking for a chair. The store she ran was simply a room with a counter near the back with a cash register atop it. The items sold were mostly day to day things that one would need, such as paper and pens and pencils, bits of food, toilet paper, and the like.

"Have a seat. Why're you so anxious?" She watched the doctor while asking, and then added, "Go on, take a seat over here."

"Oh, I couldn't," Dr. Van Bran refused, noting that the chair was behind the counter of the shop she was working. Nibelheim was apparently a quaint town where everybody knew everybody, and homes were attached to businesses. Even strangers were welcomed.

"I insist."

"All right, fine." He took a seat, and slouched ever so slightly, crossing his legs.

Dawn aked again, "So why're you so anxious?" She seemed genuinely curious.

"I'm doing a favor for Sephiroth," he answered plainly, as if it were nothing at all special.

Instantly, as if struck by lightning, Dawn's friendliness disappeared and she seemed completely startled. She froze, and her eyes looked like they had withdrawn, and she was thinking swiftly. Everything that was average was gone. Her presence became magnified, and then she slipped back into her average ways. She tried to remain as calm as possible, but it was clear that she was disturbed. She shivered with each movement, uncontrollably, like she was holding inside a long, terrified scream that rattled her whole body. "Oh, I see," she said, her teeth on the verge of chattering, "What do you need, Sir?"

Dr. Van Bran tensed. "Could you give me a tape recorder and all the blank tapes you could spare? Seph…"

"Ye… Sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt you." She hastily began gathering tapes from behind the counter. Dr. Van Braun wasn't sure if she always gathered things this quickly or if she just really wanted him out of her store. He guessed it was the second one. Her hands moved in fast, jittery movements.

"It's all right. Thanks." He paused for a moment. "Are you all right?"

Dawn looked at him warily and spoke in a hushed whisper, "We don't have many dealings with him. We try not to."

"Who?"

"Sephiroth." She finished collecting the tapes and then stuffed them into a plastic bag. "OK, here you are – don't worry about paying."

Dr. Van Braun took the bag and didn't argue with her about paying. He didn't leave, though. He knew she wasn't trying to get rid of him because of anything he did; she was afraid of Sephiroth, for some reason he didn't know, but really wanted to find out. He wanted to know what it was like to live in the same town as Sephiroth, how people felt about him. This one little interaction gave him a lot of insight. "Dawn, does everyone here avoid him? He caused a lot of problems during the meteor incident, so I've heard, but if he's not doing anything right now... I don't understand... maybe he's changed or he..." Van Braun trailed off, but his point was understood.

"What happened was –" Dawn stopped. She gathered her thoughts quickly and began to speak with a definite sort of conviction, as though she were speaking a strong monologue. "Sephiroth came to Nibelheim. There was a monster roaming down out of the mountains. If it weren't for Sephiroth leaping down from the roof of the mayor's house and killing the monster, it would have maimed one of the townsmen! Even though he saved us, everyone was badly frightened, and he knew, he could see it. He told everyone that if they kept quiet and didn't say anything about him to anyone, and everyone stayed in Nibelheim, and never left, he would make sure nothing ever happened to the town. He gave us his word. No one knows exactly why he came here, or why he doesn't want anyone to leave; but nobody wants to question Sephiroth because everyone is afraid of him." Then, she added, "Ever since then, the town has been really quiet and peaceful. Sephiroth has kept his word and no monster, bandit, or thief has ever gotten anywhere near the town."

Dr. Van Braun was stunned. Sephiroth did _this_? "That's amazing. You must have been very scared. Will you tell me about it?" He pleaded, leaning forward, trying to connect with her as best as he could to convince her. It's a trick doctors learn. If the doctor and the patient connect, then the patient feels better because they don't feel so alone.

She seemed to consider and then reluctantly said, "I'm sorry, I can't." She handed the plastic bag to him with jittery hands. "Just wait for him."

Dr. Van Braun persisted and begged, "Please?"

"I'm sorry, I can't. I wasn't there when he came back to Nibelheim." She stopped right there. Small beads of sweat began to gather on her forehead. She looked like she said something she didn't mean to. She started talking quickly, trying to distract Van Braun, but he was too focused on what she might have slipped up on.

"Something else must have happened," he said.

"Excuse me?"

"Something happened, didn't it?"

She was silent.

"What happened?"

She shivered. She started to speak really quietly, and her accent became slightly less thick. She whispered, "I'm sorry, I really can't tell you... Please, don't ask me that. Please. I'm really, really sorry..."

There was silence.

There was a hard silence. Dr. Van Braun asked, "What's wrong, Dawn?"

There was a long, hard silence.

"What's wrong?"

There was a long, hard silence that pushed him.

"Dawn?"

There was a long, hard silence that pushed him away. As hard as it could.

Dawn refused to speak. He stood silently right infront of her. She looked away from him, down at the floor. Long moments passed. He slowly moved away. He uncovered something really strange in talking with her – something had happened at Nibelheim, was still happening. He would have to investigate, if he had a chance. He walked slowly towards the door, each step muffled by the quiet.

He stepped outside, and walked towards the mansion. He decided he would rest inside until Sephiroth got back.

* * *

Sephiroth entered the Nibelheim mansion silently, and woke Dr. Van Braun, who was lying down in a chair upstairs, near the spiraling staircase. Dr. Van Braun opened his eyes, and received quite a start from the tall man. Sephiroth glanced towards the bag of tapes and the recorder. He said plainly, "You brought the tapes." It was a statement.

Dr. Van Braun nodded. "Yes, I did."

Sephiroth said, "Good. Follow me." He led Dr. Van Braun down a long spiraling staircase that led to a basement type hallway that was almost like a cavern. At the end of the hallway was a library with more leather-bound books than one could ever possibly dream of. Whoever could have imagined such a place existed.

Dr. Van Braun glanced around the library. "So," he paused, thinking. "What now?"

Sephiroth responded tongue-in-cheek, "Maybe you should place those tapes inside the tape recorder and record what I have to say? I wouldn't know, after all, you're the doctor." Maybe something was bothering him?

Dr. Van Braun looked bemused. He placed a tape in the record and hit record.

Sephiroth began to speak, seemingly both to the tape and to Van Braun at the same time. "I have terms that you must agree to for this interview and story-telling session to take place."

"Interview?" Dr. Van Braun sounded confused.

"Yes. Take a seat and please allow me to explain. You will record this interview, and all others if necessary, and then later transcribe what we've said to paper. Then, you must transfer the manuscript into the form of a book, a novel. Everything you and I say _must_ be in that book. Have it published and see to it that it is sold world wide."

Dr. Van Braun shook his head in utter amazement. "You're kidding, right?"

Sephiroth shook his head. "No."

Dr. Van Braun, still bewildered, asked, "Then, this conversation we're having right now has to be part of the book?"

"Only the first eleven copies will contain this dyad, and they will be distributed to eleven specific individuals. Besides those copies, no." Sephiroth remained calm and collected as he gave his instructions. "Two of those copies will be ours; the rest will go to other select individuals that I will reveal at a later time."

"I see..." He didn't ask who those people were and he didn't especially want to know. "What if I leave something out or add something? You're giving me a lot of responsibility."

Sephiroth's face didn't change in the slightest. He was a statue – he was a gargoyle. "You would have broken the conditions and I would be very angry with you. I don't think you would want me to be angry with you."

Neither of them said anything for a moment. Dr. Van Braun sat there quietly while Sephiroth remained towering above him.

"You understand, then?" Sephiroth said, "You will be recording every interaction you have with me on cassette tape so that you may later turn our conversations into a novel."

"I understand."

"Good. Besides that, you are free to narrate as you desire, so long as what you say is truthful and as best as you can do. I understand that you are not a writer, so I do not expect high-quality material – simply do your best to communicate clearly and truthfully."

Dr. Van Braun nodded, "All right."

Sephiroth added, "Also, the book cannot be published as non-fiction. The publishers would laugh at you if you even tried. They will believe you, however, if you say that it's either historical fiction or simply fiction. It's up to you."

Dr. Van Braun nodded, "All right."

"When you publish this novel, do so under your name with no mention of me as a collaborator at all. If I were to publish this novel, it would not aid my attempt to maintain a low profile. Any money this novel makes will be yours – its published state will be enough for me."

The doctor nodded. "I see..."

Sephiroth said, "Also, you can't have the dedication page – that's mine. It will read, 'To my memories of Cloud Strife, Tiffany Lockhart, and Zack Milano. May you all rest quietly.' I will write this all by hand and sign my name so you can photocopy it and include it in the manuscript for mass production."

"Sephiroth, are you..."

"Do as I say," Sephiroth said with a finality that couldn't be argued. Sephiroth paused for a moment, as if this was exactly what he wanted, formed the hint of a smile, and continued. "Finally, title the book 'A Forgotten Story Retold'."

Dr. Van Braun seemed rather impressed with the title. "You've really thought this out, haven't you?"

Sephiroth nodded and smiled. His smile caught Van Braun off-guard so much so that he didn't hear what Sephiroth said – only the tape recorder caught Sephiroth responding, "Yes."


	3. Prologue

Sephiroth was standing with Dr. Van Braun inside the basement of the Shinra mansion. It was a quiet and solemn place, lit by candles and littered by books. There was a book here and there with a book open and a book closed, most of them placed in their rightful places on their shelves. Dr. Van Braun was going to interview him. Sephiroth already had plans of what he was going to tell Dr. Van Braun.

Dr. Van Braun was a man that appeared to be in his mid-fifties with gray hair; his was scalp was balding and his face was creased with wrinkles. He wore inconspicuous clothes, which consisted of a pair of blue jeans, a T-shirt, and a brown sweater. He also wore a pair of glasses. He wasn't anything special.

Sephiroth on the other hand was a very unique… Creature. Dr. Van Braun had no idea exactly what Sephiroth was or where he had came from, or any knowledge about him other than what lingering rumors were still being told about him. Waiting, Dr. Van Braun stood there with a tape recorder in hand with various tapes resting on a desk, all of them blank except for one.

Sephiroth smiled, and began to speak in a smooth voice. "It's time."

"We're starting now?" Van Braun started trying to take in everything around him and memorize it for later so he could write it down.

"Yes."

"I want to say a few things before we start the actual interview process."

"Go ahead." Dr. Van Braun shifted before Sephiroth started talking.

"My name is Sephiroth, and I am the former General of SOLDIER for Shinra. I have no last name. I'm alive and well, and will soon share all the details of my life; I will answer _all_ the questions I am certain _many_ people have, including how it is that I'm still alive." He sounded as if he were talking to someone besides the doctor. While it was true that no one else was in the room, the entire world was going to hear every word of whatever Sephiroth said. At the time, it seemed as though Sephiroth might have been talking to someone in particular other than Van Braun, but Dr. Van Braun wasn't sure, and even if he was, he didn't know who or why. Van Braun didn't ask – he didn't know if he wanted to know.

Sephiroth, back to Van Braun: "Do you have any questions that you would like to ask me, Dr. Van Braun, before I start telling you everything I can remember about my life?"

"I've never done an interview before."

"The purpose of an interview is to extract information from the other person, so you need to try and get information out of me. I will not withhold much personal information unless I think it's pertinent that I save it for my story rather than say it now. However, before you ask, I will not answer any questions concerning the meteor incident or Cloud and his troupe. Now: Start interviewing me."

"I don't know how. I have no idea where to start..."

"Try asking some basic, small-talk questions and then you can gradually move onto deeper questions. This isn't a conversation; this is an interrogation." Sephiroth seemed to know exactly what he wanted from Van Braun, and was out to try and get it. Van Braun didn't know what that thing was and all he could do was comply.

"OK."

"Start."

"What is your favorite food?"

"I like meat."

"What kind of meat?"

"Delicious meat."

"Why mea..."

"- That's enough of this line of questioning. Think of another question. Asking a person questions is an art. You find out all you can from one line of questioning and once you have exhausted it, you move to a different one."

"I think I understand."

"Good. Start asking questions."

"Have you ever had any pets?"

"No. I don't like things to weigh me down, and, if it were somehow possible, for me to weigh them down."

"Why is that?"

"When a person accepts who and what they really are, as I have, they will be a lot more free than before. It is part of my nature to remain alone. A person who rejects who and what they are will always remain divided and self-defeating, as weak as a breeze-carried vapor.

They paused for a moment and then Van Braun asked, "What are you talking about?"

"Nothing important; I'm calling out for an old friend, that's all."

Silence. Van Braun took a moment to think before asking, "Who is your friend?"

Sephiroth didn't reply.

"So," the doctor broke the silence, "Do you like books?"

"Yes, I like books a lot."

"What kind of books?"

"I like books that attempt to understand the human condition. I enjoy books on philosophy, mythology, and religion as well."

"Are you religious?"

"No," Sephiroth said, and then smugly stated, "The Shinra created the Asgardian church – did you realize that?"

"No."

"I'll prove it to you later." Calm. No arrogance. Just calm.

"OK. So, what _do_ you believe in? Even atheists believe in something."

"I believe in the planet?"

"What do you mean?"

"Every living thing on the planet is housing spirit energy; spirit energy is what gives us life. When we die, our spirit energy returns to the planet and we become part of the Lifestream once again – that is, a stream of pure, concentrated makou – the planet's blood. When something is born, spirit energy comes from the planet into the organism and gives life to it; we are born from the blood of the planet, and we die to give life to the planet."

"How do you know this?"

"Because I am one with the planet." He paused. Then, as if starting a new but related topic, Sephiroth said, "Near Mideel, makou erupted from the ground, correct?"

"Right."

"That is the planet's blood. I'll say more about this later."

Van Braun thought for a moment about what he could ask. After a while, he finally got up the nerve to ask, "Are you human?"

Sephiroth couldn't help but laugh. "Interesting question."

"Are you human?"

"No."

Van Braun paused. It took him some time before he finally got over it. It's not that the information was surprising, it's just that it confirmed all of his apprehensions and fears about the person he was with. "Then what are you?"

"I don't have a name for what I am. I will tell you about my creation when I tell you my story." He gestured with his hand that it was time for a new question.

"When you say created." Dr. Van Braun paused again. He wasn't sure of himself. He finally resumed, saying, "Then..."

" – take your time, doctor. We have the rest of your life to finish."

Dr. Van Braun had chills run up his spine. He forced what Sephiroth just said to the back of his mind and continued to interview Sephiroth. "Then, who are your parents?"

He paused again. He forced what Sephiroth said to the back of his mind and continued, "Then who are your parents?"

Sephiroth seemed to give this question some consideration. "Biologically, I don't know. I was told at one point that Jenova was my mother."

"Who is she?"

"A space alien."

"Oh."

Sephiroth offhandedly continued, "I searched through my memories and what records I could find in the Shinra building. Lucrecia, one of Shinra's scientists, was my mother, but my father..." He started laughing again. "Do I look like I am half-Wutaian?"

"I don't think so..."

"Hojo was a Wutaian refugee. Either Hojo was my father or I didn't have a father at all. The latter, although less likely, is more appealing."

"Hojo, the Shinra lead scientist and premiere biologist? He was a legend in the medical field!"

"Yes, _that_ Hojo."

"Why do you hate Hojo?"

"I don't hate him; I pity him more than anything. Hojo was a neurotic, obsessive psycho-sociopath with remarkably low self-esteem to the extent of self-delusion, like some others I have observed in my life. It may be because of his background, although it could have also been physiological."

"What do you mean?"

"I'll tell you later. While this is not going to be our only interview, this interview is intended to be about me, not Hojo. Do you have any other questions?"

"When and why did you join SOLDIER?"

"I joined when I was thirteen. I'll tell you more about it when I get to it."

"OK." He paused. "So, do you speak any archaic languages?"

"Why are you asking me that?"

Van Braun felt very uncomfortable. He felt out of place, like a naked man strutting through town. "I thought you might know, that's all. You seem to be really smart and you know a lot of things, so I thought maybe you knew some scholarly things."

"I can speak Wutaian and old Nibelheimic, and I can also speak, to some extent, the language of the Ancients. I don't like the term "Archaic Languages" because it's a misnomer – people still speak Wutaian and old Nibelheimic, just not very often. It's Shinra propaganda that has invaded our speech; according to them, we are supposed to consider all ways of life except Shinra's as old and obsolete. The only language that could truly be regarded as archaic, and dead for that matter, is the language of the Ancients, or "Cetran". Most likely no one but me is capable of speaking it at this point in time, so, again, it is best regarded as a dead, language – perished from this world. However, I digress. What Shinra claims are archaic languages still remain in common and even popular use in some areas. For example, do you speak Mideelian?"

"I have to; some people in Mideel still don't speak Midgarian."

"That is exactly my point. Shinra took over everyone's lives, even a people as remote as the Mideelians."

"I see. Where did you learn to speak those languages?"

"I learned how to speak two of them during the war, and I learned how to speak Cetran while I was in the Lifestream and then have perfected it to some extent afterwards."

"Can you speak some for me?"

"Maybe. You would have a hard time writing anything I say."

"Please? I'm interested."

Sephiroth was right. As soon as he started speaking, Dr. Van Braun wasn't entirely sure what Sephiroth had just said – it sounded like gibberish passing by so quickly, so fast, that it almost made Van Braun dizzy.

He looked at Sephiroth for a moment when he finally stopped speaking and asked, "What does that mean?"

"The cat fell off the table."

"What language was that?"

"Wutaian."

"Wutai... – how did you win that war anyway?"

Sephiroth chuckled. "Everyone wants to know the answer to that question. For now, accept that I won the war for Shinra, and without me, Wutai would have defended itself admirably and Shinra would have lost a lot of its land and would be much weaker and less influential."

"OK." Dr. Van Braun tried to think of another question. "Where did you go to school?"

"I was educated in an orphanage in the Sector Four slums in Midgar, until I was 'adopted'. Shortly after that, I entered SOLDIER."

"Why did you enter SOLDIER?"

"It's complicated. I'll tell you later."

"Did you like school?"

"No. I'll tell you about it later."

Pause.

"So, what did you think of Midgar?"

"It was a very depressing place. Midgar was a monolithic city, filled with abandoned hopes and dreams and memories. It was an empty city, full of people. That's all I will say about it for now."

"Did you ever drink or smoke?"

"I detest the smell of cigarettes, but I have drank before. SOLDIERS have to drink a lot more to feel the effects of alcohol, and some of the stronger SOLDIERS can't feel them at all. Consequently, SOLDIERS usually find things besides beer to turn to."

"Like what?"

"Smoking, unfortunately."

"Was drug use a common problem in SOLDIER?"

"Early on, the SOLDIER program was not held in high public esteem, viewed by the populace as unnatural. Its members were disdained, and they were barred from many public places. Cut off from much of their old lives, SOLDIERS sought any escape they could take, drugs often being the only option available. To make matters worse, many of the original members of SOLDIER joined out of desperation: almost all of them either volunteered solely so they could send the money they earned to their families or, worse yet, were kidnapped by the Turks. So, in short, yes – drug abuse was common in SOLDIER."

"Who are the Turks? I've never heard of them."

"That isn't surprising. They were a small group of people Shinra used for spying, stealing, blackmailing, scouting, assassinating and lots of other dirty work. Not too many people know about them because they were such a small and covert group. They never had more than nine members at any given time, usually less. I don't know if they are still together after the meteor incident, but it wouldn't surprise me; they all had strong personal as well as professional ties to one another.

"OK. Tell me more about SOLDIER."

"Essentially, it was a Shinra experiment under the guise of a military program. People had to apply to be a part of it, which included an initial fee. Some people got in, others didn't. It was a highly structured phenomenon that was surprisingly flexible. That is all I'm going to say about it for now."

"All right. So, why did you decide to live in Nibelheim?"

"I have a lot of reasons. One of them is that Cloud Strife doesn't want to come here, and if he did, he would stay for as little time as possible because of all the memories he has here."

"Are you afraid of Cloud?"

"No, but it would be very messy if we saw each other at this stage of events. He hates me. He would try and kill me if he saw me without a second thought. I don't want to deal with him right now – it would be too great an inconvenience."

"I think I understand."

"That's all the questioning you get to do for now." Then, Sephiroth said something in an archaic language that Van Braun didn't know the meaning of, but something about the way Sephiroth said it made it completely comprehensible.

"_Ilbhatáithnarum_," – that was, Van Braun knew, Sephiroth's way of saying, "Let the world observe our great beginnings." How he knew this was unclear, but of its meaning he had no doubt.


	4. Prelude to Life: Introduction

"Before I was born, my mother Lucrecia was subjected to many procedures and hardships as part of a 'great experiment'. She was injected with toxic makou and alien Jenova cells. She was forced to endure what innocent animals did during darker times in science. She was chained down during the procedures, lest she act violently as a result of the injections. In the true spirit of science, the man who committed these transgressions against her was none other than her husband, one Professor Hojo. Every time she cried out for him to stop, he would only record in his notes, 'Woman expresses pain-behaviors. Take appropriate precautions.' This woman would die giving birth to me, and Hojo would record her death with a single, brief sentence in the experiment notes: 'Woman dies, specimen is born, healthy.' To Hojo, I was both his greatest scientific project and his only son; I was the most valuable thing in the world to him, professionally and personally. Thus, he was trapped between two roles, something he found great difficulty in reconciling.

"I was born in these very rooms," Sephiroth gestured around him to the Shinra basement, "and I was kept in this mansion for approximately five years; I don't remember exactly how long – what few records left behind are incredibly messy."

Dr. Van Braun could not help but look around, and then shiver at the thought of being stuck in these rooms. It wasn't anything in particular other than that they were so plain, even with the books. Without books, the rooms would be fairly ordinary. With laboratory equipment, the rooms could have been something out of a horror science-fiction movie or something like that. He could barely imagine it. They were small rooms. It must have been very tight and cramped.

"Yes, they were really that bad, Dr. Van Braun. Why not put your thoughts in the story as well? It was assist in the telling of my narrative." The stunned Dr. Van Braun only nodded.

"And there was Professor Gast, the true mastermind behind the Jenova project. He conceived its beginnings while Hojo took it to its extremes. Professor Gast was a relief and escape from my terrible childhood, in spite of his true feelings for me. He disappeared from my life when I was about six years old. I will elaborate on the usual sequence of events and my despicable circumstances so you better understand." The tall man began to pace as he spoke, gesturing from time to time.

"One day, Hojo was performing one of his routine procedures on my naked body, pinned down by unyielding leather straps. He always began by using a tranquilizer to immobilize me, and then injected cells from the alien creature, Jenova. In spite of the excruciating pain he knew I went through every time, he never used anaesthetics; every time, he would write, 'Specimen shows signs of pain.' Then, after maybe five minutes, he would inject makou into my bloodstream. And although he regarded me as his son, he would hold a scientist's professionalism, an air of sterile apathy, whenever I shivered and cried. Each moment was agonizing, and the throbbing pain would spread all through me in pulses that felt like they went on forever. Some parts of my body would suddenly feel foreign to me, and then the sensation of burning makou would overlap it, and then those parts would become numb. My vision would fade and I would lose all perception of my surroundings for long periods of time. And whenever I woke, I would feel as though my heart exploded, sending blood rushing all throughout my body, as if my blood had been stagnate during the whole of my unconsciousness."

"Because of these procedures, I would flinch every time I saw any liquid other than water, a sharp object, something green, or anything that might be involved in part of Hojo's projects. I would tense at the approach of people, and lived under the continual dread of the possibility that I might never wake up after one of Hojo's routine procedures."

"During this period of my life, I did not speak. I understood what people around me were saying, why they were speaking, but I couldn't grasp why I should participate. Neither Professor Gast nor Hojo wanted me to talk anyway, from first appearances. Hojo blindly in spite of all evidence suggesting otherwise that I was a genius, discounting my refusal to speak entirely. Professor Gast, however, simply didn't care.

"Whenever I woke up from the injections of Jenova cells and makou therapy, Hojo would be sitting next to me with a pad of paper, sometimes scribbling furiously and other times watching me, calm and concerned – but ultimately from a distance. He would murmur to himself, 'I'll take good care of you. One day you will thank me for this. Do you understand? You'll be better than everyone else. You'll be what I wanted to be. You'll be what everyone wants to be, do you understand?'

"Upon finishing recording what steps had been taken in the procedure, my responses to the injections, and so on, he would cross the room and run his fingers nimbly over a keypad just beside the door and the straps would swiftly pull away from me with an unexpected gentleness. Hojo always made his exit barely a moment after that. After he left through the doorway, a large, powerful adamantium-reinforced door would fall between us. While I knew that he believed the pain he was causing me then would later be outweighed by some good delivered on me at a later date, I never understood how he reconciled the suffering he witnessed me endure. Perhaps his skills as a scientist, the ability to detach himself from the world and truly investigate, to act as the most sophisticated sort of tool for the Shinra government, was unparalleled – but this is mere speculation, I will never know.

"Now, given my current reputation, one might suspect that the door was intended to protect Hojo from me, its true purpose was to keep me in the laboratory and not expose me to the outside world for fear that I might become contaminated. With the door closed, I simply sat, waited, would never cry, for I had learned long ago that no one would come.

"Much later, after maybe an hour had passed, Dr. Gast would come into the room, making sure the door was closed and locked behind him. He would hold me, trying to weigh me. At first, I was incredibly afraid of him, so I would try to scurry away as fast as I could, but when he finally held me, I would go limp and submit after much initial despair. At first, during these meetings, I would tense up, and then slowly relax, like a threatened animal in a death grip, waiting for the ideal moment to strike out and either kill or flee.

"Over time, I slowly began to enjoy his company a little, but I still remained reserved and wary. Note, however, he was still a Shinra scientist – he was given the duty to inject me with makou and Jenova cells from time to time, but he did so carefully – he approached me as a 'fellow human' instead of specimen. Afterwards, he comforted me as best as he could, although he was as cautious as I. Perhaps he believed that social contact was essential for even demihuman development, I don't know." Sephiroth smirked. "He cared about me – or at least, he tried to." Sephiroth paused, and then continued.

"Later on, when I gained access to Shinra records, I learned that before becoming a scientist, he was a renowned medical doctor. Also, I found a small note that remarked about his wonderful beside manner, as they call it. In short, he was very charismatic and could put anyone to ease. However, he could just as easily have advocated someone's death or suffering it was resulted in the betterment of either himself or Shinra. Perhaps that is how he rose through the ranks in the Shinra science department so quickly – he could put up a better _façade __than most politicians_.

"In the end, he was afraid of me. My best guess is he treated me as kindly as he did because he hoped that I wouldn't turn on him like an angry hound. After all, my experience was similar to an animal being repeatedly beaten and then let loose in a small area; trauma can cause many kinds of wild and unpredictable effects. However, regardless of his motives, if he were alive now, I would visit death onto him; like Hojo, he was responsible for my existence, and creatures such as I should not exist.

"Now that I have completed speaking about Professor Hojo and Professor Gast, I ought to cover a few more details. Very early on, Hojo recognized that even though I was extremely young, I was incredibly strong and dangerous. Thus, he implanted a device in the base of my neck that sent electrical shocks through my body, just in case. Hojo always kept a remote-control ready-at-hand that he could use to activate the device in dire circumstances.

"The formative years of my childhood were heavily isolated, as you can easily see. My interpersonal contact was limited to Gast, Hojo, and on the rare occasion, a small few lab technicians who were only present to fix broken equipment, and only while under the supervision of Hojo. Out that limited selection of people, Hojo was the only one that ever truly understood what I was. But then, Gast would accuse Hojo of being unethical in his scientific approach, ignoring the most basic of my human-needs, human interaction. However, as I have said before, I am not human.

"Hojo was careful and protective of me, perhaps too protective – he did not want anyone to see me besides him, even Gast. Hojo wanted me all to himself. According to him, I was his project, not to be tainted by Dr. Gast's greed – I was his success, not Gast's. I was Hojo's life, and I was all he ever had.

"I listened to people talk. It was a game of sounds to me. Because of the Jenova cells, it is possible for me to learn a language in less than two weeks, even if I am exposed to it for only a brief period of time each day. What's most interesting about this is that I can acquire the correct grammar of a target language and a wealthy vocabulary without being exposed to anymore than the basics of the target language.

"One day, when Dr. Gast was asking me questions without expecting any response as he usually did. He asked me in frustration, 'Why don't you ever even _try_ to talk?'

"I replied, 'I only talk when I want to.' He stared at me for some moments in amazement, and hastily began jotting down notes on his pad of paper.

"My speaking must have renewed Professor Gast's interest in the project because he immediately increased the amount of time he spent with me: he stayed in the basement for hours, asking me questions, performing tests to determine the level of my visual and auditory senses, and before long, he ran tests to investigate into the potential for all my senses. Yet, I never left this basement, the only place I knew.

"Hojo was furious that Gast was communicating with me, for running independent studies, and, more importantly, trying to steal _his_ project. 'He's a human being,' Gast would say angrily, 'how can you treat him like this? You _must_ interact with him; language is _essential_ to human cognitive development – surely you know that! I know you do, you have to demonstrate your understanding of higher psychological principles prior to being allowed to conduct any human experiments!'

"Hojo, I pictured, would scowl and furrow his brow until his face was nothing but wrinkles from stress, worry, and discontentment. 'Is he really that human? Stay awa from my project, Gast, or I'll make you into another Valentine...' Gast never knew I overheard these things with my preternatural hearing, nor did Hojo. But, both had..."

Dr. Van Braun seemed dazed, almost asleep, but not quite snoring beneath the sound of Sephiroth's story, but somehow, the silver-haired ex-general managed to notice, even though the doctor was certain Sephiroth was speaking with his eyes closed this whole time. He grabbed Dr. Van Braun by the shoulders, picked him up effortlessly, and shoved him against nearby bookshelf. It happened unbelievably fast. "Holy shit!" Dr. Van Braun was jarred awake.

"I'm sorry my life's story has such a soporific effect." Sephiroth grinned with just a hint of annoyance. He let Dr. Van Braun go, whom fell to the ground, and hit his head against a shelf and let out some sort of a yelp of pain. He rubbed the back of his head.

"No, never!" Dr. Van Braun insisted, "it's just that..."

Sephiroth interrupted and said, "I know, you've had a long journey here, and it's late, so you're tired..."

"How did you..." Dr. Van Braun was interrupted once more, and was again curious about Sephiroth's mysterious talents.

"It's another one of my secrets. If you stay awake and listen, maybe you could learn a bit about it," he said in a slightly irritated voice. He switched tones entirely, putting himself into what he said. "Perhaps I should tell you about the three days that changed my life: in three days, my life was wholly transformed, and they remain forever distinct to me. Up until those days, if you cannot tell already, things tend to blur together into a messy haze of pain and instinct.

"Hojo and Gast were there as well as a highly attractive woman." Sephiroth leaned his head backwards and seemed to recall her image in his mind. "She had soft green eyes that burned their way into your spirit. A small nose, fair skin, and a small, sweet mouth that was fretted with worry but nonetheless smiled often. She was well-formed, with long chestnut brown strands of hair that fell low, past the small of her back. Her hair was never tied nor braided, yet it always seemed to fall neatly into place. She was a mysterious woman. Her name was Ilfana." He paused for a brief moment and then continued, now pacing as he spoke, but always focusing on Dr. Van Braun as much as he was his story.

"None of how she had looked mattered to me then, nor does it now. Her visage was magnetic to people not only because she was beautiful, but because she had a bright aura of charisma."

Sephiroth paused and then looked at Dr. Van Braun and gave him a grin. "I'm glad you came. Your timing was absolutely perfect."


End file.
